Yahoo! JavaScript architect Douglas Crockford will be keynoting the conference with a talk entitled "JavaScript: The Good Parts." This brand-new presentation grows out of Douglas's conviction that JavaScript is a muddle. Much of it is incredibly good; much of it is flawed. The standards bodies won't fix JavaScript because they can only add to what's there...they can't remove the parts that are ill-conceived or harmful. Douglas advises that developers approach JavaScript the way Michaelangelo approached an unsculpted block of marble — that is, with an eye toward its intrinsic beauty. In this talk, he'll try to guide you toward the intrinsic beauty of JavaScript.

The YUI Theater hopes to be there to record the talk, but if you're a Yahoo! Widgets developer (or are interested in becoming one) and you'd like to hear Douglas's latest thoughts about the language, this is a great opportunity to catch one of his lectures in person.